Gonatodes Albogularis
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''Gonatodes albogularis'', which has been called a number of
vernacular name Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken form of language, particularly when perceived as having lower social status or less prestige than standard language, which is more codified, institutionally promoted, literary, or formal. More n ...
s in English, is a smallish species of
gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates. They range from . Geckos are unique among lizards ...
found in warm parts of
Central and South America Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
,
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
,
Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...
and
Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
. They prefer to live in tropical dry forest habitats. It is
sexually dimorphic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...
: the male is colourful, while the female is a more drab grey. The fingers do not have
lamellar A lamella (: lamellae) is a small plate or flake, from the Latin, and may also refer to collections of fine sheets of material held adjacent to one another in a gill-shaped structure, often with fluid in between though sometimes simply a set of ...
pads for climbing smooth surfaces like many other geckos but instead have normal claws like most lizards. At one time the species had a breeding population in southern Florida, especially
Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...
, but this population appears to have died out by the early 1990s. They are believed to be able to tell the difference between brightness and hues of
conspecifics Biological specificity is the tendency of a characteristic such as a behavior or a biochemical variation to occur in a particular species. Biochemist Linus Pauling stated that "Biological specificity is the set of characteristics of living organism ...
. Males are incredibly aggressive with territory defense against both other males and potential predators.


Taxonomy

This gecko was first scientifically described by
André Marie Constant Duméril André Marie Constant Duméril (1 January 1774 – 14 August 1860) was a French zoologist. He was professor of anatomy at the National Museum of Natural History (France), Muséum national d'histoire naturelle from 1801 to 1812, when he became pr ...
and
Gabriel Bibron Gabriel Bibron (20 October 1805 – 27 March 1848) was a French zoologist and herpetologist. He was born in Paris. The son of an employee of the Museum national d'histoire naturelle, he had a good foundation in natural history and was ...
in 1836 using a few specimens sent to Paris by
Auguste Plée Auguste Plée, born 1787 in Paris and died 17 August 1825 in Fort Royal, Martinique, was a French naturalist. Biography Between 1821 and 1823 he was sketching military installations, ports and towns in Puerto Rico. (in Spanish). After travellin ...
from
Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...
. They also were able to examine numerous specimens collected in
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
by the
anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...
polymath
Ramón de la Sagra Ramón Dionisio José de la Sagra y Peris (8 April 179823 May 1871) was a Spanish people, Spanish anarchist, politician, writer, and botanist who founded the world's first anarchist journal, ''El Porvenir'' (Spanish for "The Future"). Biography ...
, who had arrived in Paris from that island the previous year with many objects of
natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...
. ''Gonatodes albogularis'' is the
type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...
for the genus ''
Gonatodes ''Gonatodes'' is a genus of New World dwarf geckos of the family Sphaerodactylidae. Description The majority of the species in the genus ''Gonatodes'' are diurnally active, scansorial, and sexually dichromatic, with adult body size (snout–ve ...
'', because when
Leopold Fitzinger Leopold Joseph Franz Johann Fitzinger (13 April 1802 – 20 September 1884) was an Austrian zoologist. Fitzinger was born in Vienna and studied botany at the University of Vienna under Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin. He worked at the Vienna Naturhis ...
defined the genus in 1843 he included three species in it: ''G. gravenhorstii'', ''G. laevis'' and ''G. albogularis'', because the first two names were ''
nomina nuda Nomen may refer to: *Nomen gentilicium, the middle part of Ancient Roman names ** ''Nomen est omen'', a Latin quote about nominative determinism *Nomen (ancient Egypt), the personal name of Ancient Egyptian pharaohs *Jaume Nomen (born 1960), Catal ...
'', ''G. albogularis'' remains the only valid name for a type species by
monotypy In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...
.


Subspecies

There are four
subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...
as of 2020: * ''Gonatodes albogularis albogularis'' (Duméril and Bibron, 1836) * ''Gonatodes albogularis bodinii'' (Rivero Blanco, 1964) – First described as an independent species by Carlos Rivero-Blanco, first subsumed as a subspecies of this species by Beate Röll in 2009. * ''Gonatodes albogularis fuscus'' ( Hallowell, 1855) – First subsumed under this species by some taxonomists in 1962. It was considered an independent species by authorities such as the
Reptile Database The Reptile Database is a scientific database that collects taxonomic information on all living reptile species (i.e. no fossil species such as dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared ...
as of 2014 and Röll in 2009, but
herpetologist Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...
s from the United States such as
Robert Powell Robert Thomas Powell ( ; born 1 June 1944) is an English actor who is known for the title roles in '' Mahler'' (1974) and '' Jesus of Nazareth'' (1977), and for his portrayal of secret agent Richard Hannay in '' The Thirty Nine Steps'' (1978) ...
and Robert W. Henderson have preferred to consider it to be a subspecies. * ''Gonatodes albogularis notatus'' ( Reinhardt and Lütken, 1862) – The form from the islands in the north of the
Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
.


Types

There are two
syntypes In biological nomenclature, a syntype is any one of two or more biological types that is listed in a description of a taxon where no holotype was designated. Precise definitions of this and related terms for types have been established as part o ...
for the nominate form which are kept at the
Muséum national d'histoire naturelle The French National Museum of Natural History ( ; abbr. MNHN) is the national natural history museum of France and a of higher education part of Sorbonne University. The main museum, with four galleries, is located in Paris, France, within the Ja ...
in Paris. These were supposedly collected on
Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...
, although the species does not appear to occur there.


Etymology

The
etymology Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...
of the
specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...
''albogularis'' is from the
Latin language Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
adjective An adjective (abbreviations, abbreviated ) is a word that describes or defines a noun or noun phrase. Its semantic role is to change information given by the noun. Traditionally, adjectives are considered one of the main part of speech, parts of ...
''albus'', meaning '(dull) white', ''gula'', meaning 'throat', and the Latin
suffix In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns and adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs. Suffixes can ca ...
''-arius'', which means 'pertaining to'; i.e. together giving 'white-throated', as this described their syntypes. This name was chosen by Duméril and Bibron for this
taxon In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...
because the specimens they examined had the lower part of the head and the neck being "''un blanc extrêmement pur''", this colour also being found on the thighs, belly and underside of the tail, which contrasted sharply with "''un noir profond''" of the flanks and sides of the body -they describe the anterior of the creature as slate-coloured, and the breast whitish-grey. Clearly, dead animals discolour somewhat when preserved, or at least did so with the methods of two centuries ago!


Common names

It has traditionally been called the white-throated clawed gecko or white-throated gecko in English, which is a
calque In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language ...
of its
scientific name In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...
. The name yellow-headed gecko is now commonly used for this species in the United States, but it originally applied to ''Gonatodes fuscus'', now ''G. albogularis fuscus'', which is the subspecies formerly found as an
introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...
in Florida. In Venezuela it is known as ''mea-mea'' or ''machurito'' in Spanish. In
La Guajira La Guajira () is a departments of Colombia, department of Colombia. It occupies most of the Guajira Peninsula in the northeast region of the country, on the Caribbean Sea and bordering Venezuela, at the northernmost tip of South America. The ca ...
, where the language is the
Arawakan Arawakan (''Arahuacan, Maipuran Arawakan, "mainstream" Arawakan, Arawakan proper''), also known as Maipurean (also ''Maipuran, Maipureano, Maipúre''), is a language family that developed among ancient Indigenous peoples in South America. Branch ...
Wayuunaiki Wayuu ( ), or Guajiro, is a major Arawakan language spoken by 400,000 indigenous Wayuu people in northwestern Venezuela and northeastern Colombia on the Guajira Peninsula and surrounding Lake Maracaibo. There were an estimated 300,000 speake ...
or heavily influenced by it, this gecko is called ''curumachár'' or ''culumasár''. The Mexican
Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad The (CONABIO; ) is a permanent inter-ministerial commission of the Mexican government, Federal Mexican government, created in 1992. It has the primary purpose of coordinating, supporting and executing activities and projects designed to foment u ...
officiated the
vernacular name Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken form of language, particularly when perceived as having lower social status or less prestige than standard language, which is more codified, institutionally promoted, literary, or formal. More n ...
in Spanish of ''geco cabeza amarilla'' in 2001. A name in Colombia is ''güeco cabeciamarillo''. Another Spanish name is ''limpiacasa''. The
Papiamento Papiamento () or Papiamentu (; ) is a Portuguese-based creole language spoken in the Dutch Caribbean. It is the most widely spoken language on Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao ( ABC Islands). The language, spelled in Aruba and in Bonaire and ...
name for this gecko (and most other species) is ''pega-pega''.


Description

This gecko can grow up to between . A maximal length of is also given. Like almost all ''Gonatodes'' species it is
sexually dimorphic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...
. Male geckos are colourful and have yellowish''Gonatodes albogularis''
wildherps
to orange-coloured heads and dark blue bodies, whereas the female geckos are more drab, having greyish white or light brown heads and bodies. The species are also identified by their round
pupil The pupil is a hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina.Cassin, B. and Solomon, S. (1990) ''Dictionary of Eye Terminology''. Gainesville, Florida: Triad Publishing Company. It appears black becau ...
s and digits without extending
lamellae Lamella (: lamellae) means a small plate or flake in Latin, and in English may refer to: Biology * Lamella (mycology), a papery rib beneath a mushroom cap * Lamella (botany) * Lamella (surface anatomy), a plate-like structure in an animal * Lame ...
. It has no eyelids. The young geckos are coloured like the females. Males have a larger snout-vent length, distance from tip of head to the base of the tail. Both males and females reach sexual maturity at the same size with the ability to reproduce any time during the year. They reach this size around the age of 6 months. Similar to other geckos, ''G. albogularis'' does not accumulate fat in their abdomens. This suggests that reproductive abilities are not influenced by the amount of fat a lizard has. Reproductive abilities are driven by other factors. G. albogularis is typically found in dry habitats but have also been observed in moist habitats. Their main diet consists of insects and spiders. G. albogularis is also a very territorial lizard. They defend their territories by primarily waving their tails and other behaviors.


Similar species

In the
Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea, forming part of the West Indies in Caribbean, Caribbean region of the Americas. They are distinguished from the larger islands of the Greater Antilles to the west. They form an arc w ...
it can be distinguished from ''G. antillensis'' by having a much rougher skin texture. The males have a darker-coloured body, and have a blue patch near the ear. The pupil is always round.


Distribution

* ''Gonatodes albogularis albogularis'' The
nominate subspecies In biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics ( morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. ...
is known from the Lesser Antilles, northern
Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
( Valle del Cauca, Chocó,
La Guajira La Guajira () is a departments of Colombia, department of Colombia. It occupies most of the Guajira Peninsula in the northeast region of the country, on the Caribbean Sea and bordering Venezuela, at the northernmost tip of South America. The ca ...
),
Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
( Barinas and elsewhere). The first specimens were supposedly collected on
Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...
in the early 19th century, but the species has never been recovered from that island again. There are some records from
Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...
, but as of 2018 it is believed that these are in error and based on misidentifications with ''G. vittatus'', which is an extremely common species in that country. The syntypes of the nominate form have also been said to have been collected on
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
, but the nominate form is also thought to be introduced to the island. In the Lesser Antilles it is found on
Aruba Aruba, officially the Country of Aruba, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in the southern Caribbean Sea north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguaná Peninsula, Paraguaná and northwest of Curaçao. In 19 ...
and
Curaçao Curaçao, officially the Country of Curaçao, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located in the southern Caribbean Sea (specifically the Dutch Caribbean region), about north of Venezuela. Curaçao includ ...
. Hummelinck proposed that this distribution is not natural and that the species is introduced on these islands. On Curaçao it is particularly common in the central portion of the island around the old plantations of Daniël and Siberië. The populations in Venezuela are found in the
ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...
s of: the islands of the coast of the mainland, the coastal strip of the mainland, the lowlands around
Lake Maracaibo Lake Maracaibo () is located in northwestern Venezuela, between the states of Zulia, Trujillo, and Mérida. While Maracaibo is commonly referred to as a lake, its current hydrological characteristics may better classify it as estuary and/or ...
, the
Cordillera de Mérida The Cordillera de Mérida is a mountain range, or massif, in northwestern Venezuela. The Cordillera de Mérida is a northeastern extension of the Andes Mountains and the most important branch of the Venezuelan Andes. The range runs approximately 4 ...
, the
Serranía del Perijá The Serranía del Perijá, Cordillera de Perijá or Sierra de Perijá is a mountain range, an extension of the eastern Andean branch ( Cordillera Oriental), in northern South America, between Colombia and Venezuela, ending further north in the ...
, the hills of
Lara Lara may refer to: People * Lara (name), can be a given name or a surname in several languages * Lara (mythology), a naiad nymph, daughter of the river Almo in Ovid's ''Fasti'' Places *Lara (state), a state in Venezuela * Electoral district ...
and
Falcón Falcón State (, ) is one of the 23 States of Venezuela, states of Venezuela. The state capital is Coro, Venezuela, Coro. The state was named after Juan Crisóstomo Falcón. History Early history Present day Falcón State was first explored ...
and the
Orinoco Delta The Orinoco Delta is a vast river delta of the Orinoco River, located in eastern Venezuela. Location The Orinoco Delta is one of the eight natural regions of Venezuela. It covers the whole of Delta Amacuro State and a few square kilometers o ...
. It is absent from the central
Llanos The Llanos ( Spanish ''Los Llanos'', "The Plains"; ) is a vast tropical grassland plain situated to the east of the Andes in Colombia and Venezuela, in northwestern South America. It is an ecoregion of the tropical and subtropical grasslands, ...
(plains), the
Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin ...
in the south, and the
Guyana Shield The Guiana Shield (; ; ; ) is one of the three cratons of the South American Plate. It is a 1.7 billion-year-old Precambrian geological formation in northeast South America that forms a portion of the northern coast. The higher elevations on t ...
in the east, which together correspond to the vast majority of the territory of the country. In the United States, G. albogularis is most prominent in Florida. With a tropical-like climate, non-native species are able to survive, and this lizard is no exception. It is most likely that the yellow-headed gecko migrated from the
Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...
into other parts of Florida. The first documented sighting was reported in 1934, but research suggests that they have been in Florida since 1929. * ''Gonatodes albogularis bodinii'' This taxon was first collected on Monje Grande del Sur, Venezuela, in the early 1960s. It appears to be
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to the
Los Monjes Archipelago The Los Monjes islands (Spanish: ''Archipiélago Los Monjes'') is a federal dependency of Venezuela are located to the northwest of the Gulf of Venezuela, off the coast of Guajira Peninsula at the border between Colombia and the Venezuelan st ...
and found on both Monje Grande del Sur and Monje Grande del Norte. * ''Gonatodes albogularis fuscus'' ''G. albogularis fuscus'' was first collected in
Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...
, likely at the port town of
El Rama Rama is a municipality and a city in the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region of Nicaragua.
Inifom ...
, although as of 1988 the
holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...
is missing. It is also distributed in
Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
,
Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...
,
El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...
, and Cuba, including
Cayo Santa María Cayo Santa María (Saint Mary Cay or "Key") is an island off Cuba's north central coast in the Jardines del Rey archipelago. The island is linked by road and bridge to the town of Caibarién on the main island. Cayo Santa María is well known for ...
, and western Colombia. This taxon was first collected around
Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
, Florida, in 1934, and is thought to have spread from the
Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral island, coral cay archipelago off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami a ...
, although the first specimen was only collected there in 1939. It may have been transported from the Keys to other areas in southern Florida in the early 20th century, but it seems to have naturally died out throughout the Florida mainland or never truly established breeding populations there. The last specimen was collected in
Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...
in 1989, and the last sighting of the species was in Key West in 1995. Monitoring for the creature by gecko specialist herpetologists from 1995 to 2005 throughout southern Florida failed to provide any evidence that the species remained extant in the region. * ''Gonatodes albogularis notatus'' This taxon was probably first collected in the city of
Aquin Aquin (; ) is a commune in the Aquin Arrondissement, in the Sud department of Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahama ...
,
Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...
, although in 1988 Schartz and Henderson gave a long list of different type localities throughout Haiti for the single specimen. It is found on the islands of
Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
,
Grand Cayman Island Grand Cayman is the largest of the three Cayman Islands and the location of the territory's capital, George Town. In relation to the other two Cayman Islands, it is approximately 75 miles (121 km) southwest of Little Cayman and 90 miles ( ...
,
Îlet à Cabrit Îlet à Cabrit (), officially French: îlet à Cabrit des Saintes (literally: ''Goat Island of Les Saintes''), is an island in the Îles des Saintes, Guadeloupe, the Lesser Antilles. It belongs to the commune of Terre-de-Haut. Geography Îlet to ...
(part of the
Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...
archipelago of
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
) and
Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...
. It has been recorded at altitudes from sea level to . On
Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...
it is primarily found in coastal areas and is restricted to the west of Haiti, it had not been recorded from eastern Haiti or anywhere in the
Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...
as of 1980. It is widespread on the
Tiburon Peninsula The Tiburon Peninsula (), or simply "the Tiburon" (''le Tiburon''), is a region of Haiti encompassing most of Haiti's southern coast. It starts roughly at the southernmost point of the Haiti-Dominican Republic border and extends westward near C ...
of Haiti and occurring on the
Plaine du Cul-de-Sac Plain of the Cul-de-Sac (, also known as the Cul-de-Sac Plain, or the Cul-de-Sac Depression) is a fertile lowland on the island of Hispaniola. It extends from southeastern Haiti into the southwestern Dominican Republic, where it is known as the '' ...
and the northern shore of the
Gulf of Gonâve The Gulf of Gonâve (, ; ) is a large gulf of the Caribbean Sea along the western coast of Haiti. Haiti's capital city, Port-au-Prince, is located on the coast of the gulf. Other cities on the gulf coast include Gonaïves, Saint-Marc, Léogane ...
northwards to the city of
Gonaïves Gonaïves (; also Les Gonaïves; , ) is a commune in northern Haiti, and the capital of the Artibonite department of Haiti. The population was 356,324 at the 2015 census. History The city of Gonaïves was founded around 1422 by a group of T ...
, including the
Ile de la Gonâve Ile or ILE may refer to: Ile * Ile, a Puerto Rican singer * Ile District (disambiguation), multiple places * Ilé-Ifẹ̀, an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria * Interlingue (ISO 639:ile), a planned language * Isoleucine, an amino aci ...
. * Unknown The species also occur in
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
(
Chiapas Chiapas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas, is one of the states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises Municipalities of Chiapas, 124 municipalities and its capital and large ...
,
Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...
),
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
and
Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...
, but it is unclear to which subspecies these populations belong. It has been stated to be found in
Belize Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...
, but it has never actually been recorded in that country. The population on
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
has also been said to represent the nominate subspecies which is generally from northern South America, as well as ''fuscus'' from southern Central America, although ''notatus'' is found on the surrounding Caribbean islands, and the species has also been said to be introduced to the nation.


Reproduction and parental care

Gonatodes albogularis prefers to lay their eggs in communal sites to maximize the hatching success and extra protection from predators.  Gonatodes albogularis can have multiple offspring in a year and does not have a preferential breeding season.


Site selection for egg laying

Females primarily nest in tree trunks laying single eggs. However, it has been observed for tree bases to be communal egg-laying spots in Costa Rica and Panama. These locations are also where most of these lizards can be found along with tree branches, under rocks, debris, and in soil litter. Soil litter provides the best conditions for communal egg-laying. These conditions often lead to higher reproductive success of females along with greater success of hatchlings. A high density of eggs in one area can provide moisture control, so the eggs will not dry out as quickly. This is especially valuable during the dry season when eggs are more susceptible to desiccation. Soil litter can also act as protection. The eggs are less visible when they are hidden in the litter, so they are less prone to predators.


Brood size

''G. albogularis'' females only carry one egg at a time with the ability of having more than one offspring in a year. Although reproduction can happen anytime during the year, it happens significantly less from December–May which is during the dry season. They put all of their reproductive efforts towards ensuring that one offspring survives. The egg will hatch in 2–4 months after it has been laid.


Physiology

Yellow-headed gecko are able to differentiate between coloration and brightness with direct consequences to mating partner selections.


Vision

It is believed that the yellow-headed gecko is able to tell the difference in brightness and hues of conspecifics. The lens of the lizard is yellow. With the yellow lens, short wavelengths (less than 450 nm) are blocked, so there will not be as much damage to the eye. The lens also acts in limiting color distortion. Colors on these lizards can be highly reflective which influences their desirability for mating along with other behaviors. Longer wavelengths of light are consistent with duller colors. Females prefer males with brighter colors, so the ability to detect different brightness has direct effects on mate selection. Although this can be useful for choosing a mate, it can only be used when the lizards are in close proximity to another.


Mating

Yellow-headed geckos exhibit aggressive behaviors to defend territory and as anti-predator mechanisms. They also display different coloration to maximize mating success.


Male intraspecific interactions

Males have many aggressive behaviors that help them defend their territories from not only other males but also predators. Some of these behaviors include throat depressions, push-ups, tail displays, whole body waving, and bites. Males with high success in defending their territories exhibited more of these aggressive behaviors, and the behaviors lasted much, much longer. This gecko initially starts with more subtle movements by only moving one part of their body like throat depressions. If he feels more threatened, he will exhibit stronger, more aggressive behaviors such as push-ups or whole-body waving. These aggressive behaviors usually crest mid-day with high variability any other time of day. One hypothesis suggests that aggressive behaviors peak mid-day, because their predators are not as active. G. albogularis has a chance to increase their fitness by defending their habitat and searching for mates. Similar to other species, a high body mass is often associated with more aggressive behaviors. Larger body mass is also associated with greater reproductive success because these males are more dominant. Testosterone is not a contributor to aggression level in this gecko. More aggressive males not only had a larger body mass but also smaller, lighter testicles. Increased hormones levels of adrenaline and noradrenaline are more likely to be associated with higher aggression levels.


Mate searching behavior

As with many species, natural selection and sexual selection are working against one another in G. albogularis. For mating purposes, females typically prefer males who have brighter colors. However, some brighter colors make the males more prone to predation. Being inconspicuous gives males a greater chance of survival but significantly decreases the chance of finding a mate. Yellower males are an exception to this. Compared to red males, yellow males are more likely to outcompete other males and have a decreased risk of predation. The coloration is also a sign of dominance, so they have an advantage in both sexual and natural selection. In one experiment, the colors of the male lizards were masked using a light. When the colors were masked, females seemed to prefer blue males. This suggests that females prefer blue males, but the yellow males are much more dominant, so they are able to mate with females at a higher rate than their counterparts.


Predators

One predator of the yellow-headed gecko is the Brown Vinesnake, or ''
Oxybelis aeneus ''Oxybelis aeneus'', commonly known as the Mexican vine snake or brown vine snake, is a species of colubrid snake, which is endemic to the Americas. Geographic range and habitat ''O. aeneus'' is found from within the Atascosa, Patagonia, and Pa ...
''. There have only been reports of the snake killing the lizard, and the act of consumption has not been observed. The Brown Vinesnake ambushes its prey with its enlarged rear fangs and moderate venom. Some of their other predators are larger lizards, birds, and mammals.


Parasites

G. albogularis is prone to parasitism by many species of Nematoda. Some of the species include ''Cosmocerca parva'', ''Parapharyngodon scleratus'', ''Physaloptera retusa'', ''Skrjabinelazia galliardi'', ''Spauligodon bonairensis'', and ''Spauligodon oxkutzcabiensis''. These parasites are classified as generalist helminths and typically found in the digestive tract (stomach and small and large intestines). The most prevalent ones are ''Skrjabinelazia galliardi'' and ''Spauligodon oxkutzcabiensis'' with ''S. oxkutzcabiensis'' having the most detrimental effects to the health of the lizard.


Escape behavior

To decrease the risk of predation, the yellow-headed gecko will lose its tail if a predator latches onto it. The escape behavior theory says that the lizard will lose its tail only when the risk of predation outweighs the cost of fleeing. Although this action provides defense from the initial attack, losing the tail does decrease the chance of survival if there is a subsequent attack. After an individual loses its tail, they will exhibit more escape behavior. They will not allow predators to get as close to them, because they do not have that extra layer of protection. As the tail grows back, the escape behavior tends to decrease, because the lizard is not as susceptible to predation, because they have more protection. The lizards will also stay closer to their shelter once they lose their tail to limit flight initiation distance. Flight initiation distance describes "the distance between a prey and an approaching predator when the prey starts to flee." In both male and female yellow-headed geckos, flight initiation distance and distance to nearest refuge were positively correlated. As flight initiation time increased so did distance to the nearest refuge. Temperature can also play a role in whether or not this lizard exhibits escape behavior. High temperatures are more likely to be associated with a lesser distance between the lizard and its predator. In high temperatures, the lizard has higher activity levels. By waiting for the predator to get as close as possible, energy expenditures will be limited thus increasing fitness. Escape behaviors are also indicative of the female Yellow-headed gecko's
gravidity In biology and medicine, gravidity and parity are the number of times a female has been pregnant (gravidity) and carried the pregnancies to a viable gestational age (parity). These two terms are usually coupled, sometimes with additional terms, t ...
. This phenomenon is often referred to as behavioral compensation, gravid females will change their behaviors in flight initiation distance and eloped distance to balance the costs and benefits of avoiding predators. Gravid females are heavier and move slower but have a higher flight initiation distance, distance fled and lower distance to refuge.


Ecology

Yellow-headed geckos feed on
insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...
s. They are mainly diurnal, although they avoid direct sunlight. A study in Panama found that they may lay eggs on a seasonal basis, laying more eggs during the rainy season. Only one egg is laid at a time.


Habitat

The species seems to prefer tropical dry forest, forest edges and anthropogenic habitats. In Haiti it is primarily found along the coast as an "edificarian" -this means it prefers human buildings as habitat. They can sometimes be found indoors. As a result, they are likely to enter areas with human activity and interact with humans.


Relationship to humans

Up until the 1950s the ''pega-pega'' was much feared in the Antilles, where the superstition formerly existed that once it climbed on you it would latch itself so tightly it would be almost impossible to remove, with the best remedies being burning it off with a lit cigarette, a hot clothes iron or by pouring boiling water over it. Some also claimed it was poisonous. This superstition had largely faded among the younger generation by the turn of the century.


See also

* Dwarf yellow-headed gecko * Yellow-headed day gecko


References


External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2708095 Gonatodes
gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates. They range from . Geckos are unique among lizards ...
gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates. They range from . Geckos are unique among lizards ...
gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates. They range from . Geckos are unique among lizards ...
Reptiles of Belize Reptiles of Colombia Reptiles of Costa Rica Reptiles of Cuba Reptiles of El Salvador Reptiles of Haiti Reptiles of the Dominican Republic Reptiles of Honduras Reptiles of Jamaica Reptiles of Mexico Reptiles of Nicaragua Reptiles of Panama Reptiles of Venezuela Reptiles described in 1826 Taxa named by André Marie Constant Duméril Taxa named by Gabriel Bibron